ADL rips Kamala Harris campaign over meeting pro-Hamas activist

The Anti-Defamation League chides Biden administration and Harris campaign over ties to radical Arab-American journalist and activist.

By World Israel News Staff

The Anti-Defamation League took aim at the Biden administration and Vice President Kamala Harris’ presidential campaign this week, chiding both over their ties to a pro-Hamas activist whom Democrats have sought out in a bid to woo progressives and Arab voters back to the party ahead of the November election.

Prior to his withdrawal from the presidential race in July, President Joe Biden’s support for Israel early in its war against the Hamas terror organization fueled a popular backlash within the Democratic party’s left-wing, leading to the emergence of the Uncommitted National Movement, an alliance of Arab-American activists and progressives who encouraged Democratic voters to withhold their votes from the president during primary votes.

With Michigan again expected to be a key battleground state in this year’s presidential election, Democrats have sought to shore up support among the state’s Arab community, which makes up an estimated 2-3% of the population.

As part of their efforts, Biden administration and Harris campaign officials have met with Osama Siblani, publisher of the Arab American News and a long-time activist in Dearborn, Michigan.

In February, Biden administration officials reached out to Siblani, meeting with him in a bid to gain his backing for the upcoming election.

Last Thursday, Siblani again met with Democratic officials, including Julie Chávez Rodriguez, former senior advisor to President Biden who managed Biden’s 2024 presidential bid, before being tapped to lead the Harris campaign following the president’s withdrawal from the race.

Prior to the February and August meetings, Siblani had drawn criticism for his open support of the Hamas terror organization and his views on the Israeli government.

On October 11th, three days after Gaza terrorists invaded southwestern Israel and massacred approximately 1,200 Israelis, Siblani defended Hamas, refusing to describe the group as a terror organization.

“We are not going to be intimidated when they say Hamas is a terrorist organization,” Siblani told supporters at a rally in Dearborn. “The fact is that it is not a terrorist organization. And we have to say to them ‘The terrorist is Benjamin Netanyahu and his government.”

Elsewhere, Siblani has lauded Hamas terrorists as “freedom fighters,” and said he would never “apologize for Hamas firing rockets at Israel.”

The Republican Jewish Committee blasted the Harris campaign Friday and the Biden administration over their ties to Siblani, tweeting: “The American Jewish community cannot trust Kamala Harris.”

In comments published by The Times of Israel on Monday, an ADL spokesperson chastised the Biden White House and the Harris campaign over the meetings with Siblani, saying he was not fit to serve as an “interlocuter for the Arab American community.”

“Any person who denies that Hamas is a terrorist organization should not be meeting with appointed and elected officials to discuss foreign policy.”